Apple To Start Offering Original Video Content via Apple Music

Apple Music, their premium music streaming service, will soon be getting some extra value in the form of video. There are two new original shows that will be premiering on the platform, acting as Apple’s first foray into this industry. Although it’s their first video series, they do have plenty of experience with the iTunes Store in distribution.

“Planet of the Apps” is a reality show much in the vein of Shark Tank. Competitors are all app developers who are trying to create something novel and get the attention of cultural influencers like Will.i.am or Jessica Alba. The value of these celebrities is a bit unclear. The show does show the top teams getting help from other large tech start-ups like Uber and eventually pitching to a real VC firm for real capital. The show’s concept may seem a bit shaky, but it has great value integration within Apple’s ecosystem. As you watch the show, you can download and use the apps that they’re talking about. It makes the show much more interactive.

Their other show is a series based around the Carpool Karaoke. The concept originated on The Late Late Show with James Corden, where him and another celebrity would sing to a song as they drove in a car. This new series is going to feature two or more celebrities paired up in a car singing, along with other antics that may happen during their travels. From the trailer, it’s not clear whether their hands should be on the wheel or whether this is will open up a new activity in self-driving cars.

Both shows will “will premiere and be an exclusive on Apple Music” according to Apple executive Eddy Cue. This means it’ll show up on one’s Apple TV, iOS devices, and in the Android phone app. There is currently no Apple Music app for Android TV. Will we see one soon? That’s unlikely unfortunately. Amazon has been holding out for a long time on Android TV, partially due to their own TV platform. Apple has traditionally been more strict with their content.

Still, this cordcutting news should interest some users. More companies are investing in the entertainment market by creating their own original video, giving them greater control over licensing. Tying this into Apple Music essentially gives them a dual music/video subscription service, similar to YouTube Red. With this move, it could put Netflix as a bit of a disadvantage by only offering one type of entertainment, albeit doing it very well. Will we see a closer blend of music and video in the near future? Will Spotify or Netflix invest in the other medium, or will one acquire the other to stay competitive? This can make for an interesting discussion and I’m sure plenty of individuals in the industry are having that right now.

Nick Felker is a student Electrical & Computer Engineering student at Rowan University (C/O 2017) and the student IEEE webmaster. When he's not studying, he is a software developer for the web and Android (Felker Tech). He has several open source projects on GitHub (http://github.com/fleker)
Devices: Moto G-2013 Moto G-2015, Moto 360, Google ADT-1, Nexus 7-2013 (x2), Lenovo Laptop, Custom Desktop.
Although he was an intern at Google, the content of this blog is entirely independent and his own thoughts.